On Thursday, ESPN 150 tight end Josh McNeil (Durham, N.C./Milford) announced that he decommitted from Alabama, ending the possibility of he and fellow four-star tight end O.J. Howard ever playing together for the Crimson Tide.

The reason Alabama and McNeil parted ways comes from an academic issue that stems from his ninth grade year, according to McNeil’s high school coach, Antonio King.

“There’s a question about when he went to a prep school his ninth grade year as a basketball player,” King said. “It’s something we tried to get fixed from way back in his ninth grade year. It’s a question, but I don’t think it should be a major problem.”

This past weekend, McNeil made a trip to LSU, and the Tigers look to be the new favorite -- McNeil even said he flipped to LSU via Twitter on Thursday. However, sources say the LSU coaching staff might not be able to take his commitment at this time, either, until the academic situation clears up.